Airlink considers all-cargo option

A shift this year to a moreexpensive-
to-maintain all-jet fleet
has cut into profits for Swaziland
Airlink, but has meant more
cargo hold capacity for airfreight
shippers.
“The customers demanded
the fleet upgrade. We have five
rotations a day on the Matsapha to
Johannesburg route, and three were
handled by prop planes. These were
the less travelled rotations. But
flyers wanted the speed and comfort
of the jets all the time,” said Teddy
Mavuso, CEO of the only airline to
serve the landlocked country.
ERJ aircraft replaced the
remaining Gulfstream prop aircraft
on June 1 for flights that take on
average 45 minutes.
“Jets are very expensive, and this
is quite pronounced on our bottom
line. But we had to do it because of
public insistence for comfort and
safety, because the jet is perceived
as safer,” Mavuso said.
An unexpected benefit has
been greater air cargo movement
for routes whose utilisation by
airfreight shippers diminished when
the global recession hit.
“In terms of cargo we had very
good growth in 2009. It’s mainly
clothing, spare parts and small
electronics like cell phones. But
volumes stagnated at the end of
2009 and the start of 2010. It also
dropped after the World Cup. Since
the all-jet fleet was introduced
I would say our volumes have
returned to a reasonable level,” he
said.
In fact, volume numbers have
remained so satisfactory that the
airline is considering putting into
service Swaziland’s first air cargo
plane.
“We are exploring a dedicated
airfreight service. One of our
aircraft will be converted into
a freighter. This is still on the
drawing board but we think the
volumes will be there if we offer
the service,” Mavuso said.